Posture control device

Abstract

To provide an attitude control device capable of stabilizing an attitude of a load placed on a load-carrying platform.SOLUTION: A seat 21 includes: a base part 40 in which an upper recess part 41 shaped to recess downward is provided at an upper end; and a loading part 30 in which a lower protrusion part 33 shaped to protrude downward is provided at a lower end. In a mode that an outer face of the lower protrusion part 33 and an inner face of the upper recess part 41 are opposed, the loading part 30 is provided at an upper part of the base part. The seat 21 has a connection part 50 for connecting the base part 40 to the loading part 30 via a spring part 51. The outer face of the lower protrusion part 33 of the loading part 30 has a spherical face. The inner face of the upper recess part 41 of the base part 40 includes a guide part 42. The guide part 42 guides the base part 40 and the loading part 30 in a relatively movable manner in a direction along the outer face of the lower protrusion part 33 forming the spherical face.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an attitude control device for controlling the attitude of a loading platform provided on a moving body.

Background Art

[0002] Normally, vehicles such as automobiles have seats on which passengers sit. Vehicle seats have functions such as changing the angle of the backrest, which is the part where the passenger leans their back, and changing the angle of the seat part, which is the part where the passenger sits down (see Patent Document 1). In a vehicle, it is possible to set the attitude of the seat, and thus the seating attitude of the passenger, according to the preferences of the passenger and the usage situation of the vehicle.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] With the increasing sophistication of vehicles, there is a demand for further improvement in the functionality of vehicle seats to enhance the riding comfort. Note that not only attitude control devices for controlling the attitude of vehicle seats but also attitude control devices for controlling the attitude of loading platforms provided on automated guided vehicles, i.e., any attitude control device for controlling the attitude of a loading platform provided on a moving body, are similarly required to be more sophisticated.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0005] The attitude control device for solving the above problems is an attitude control device for controlling the attitude of a loading platform provided on a moving body. The loading platform includes a loading part that constitutes a part on which a load is placed, a base part provided below the loading part in a manner of supporting the loading part, and a connecting part that connects the base part and the loading part via a restoring member that generates a restoring force to return to the original length when extended. The loading part and the base part are provided in a manner that the lower part of the loading part and the upper part of the base part face each other. One of the upper part of the base part and the lower part of the loading part forms a convex spherical surface downward, and the other of the upper part of the base part and the lower part of the loading part is provided with a guiding part that guides the relative movement of the base part and the loading part along the spherical surface direction.

[0006] When the moving body moves, an inertial force acts on the loading platform of the moving body along with the acceleration, deceleration, turning, running on a rough road, etc. of the moving body. According to the above configuration, by using the guiding part to relatively move the loading part and the base part of the loading platform, and attenuating the inertial force acting on the loading part of the loading platform during this relative movement by using the restoring force of the restoring member, the shock acting on the loading part can be reduced. Thereby, the attitude of the loading part of the loading platform, and thus the attitude of the load placed on the loading part, can be stabilized.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0007]

Figure 1

Figure 2

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Figure 8

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Figure 11

Figure 12

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0008] (First Embodiment) Hereinafter, the attitude control device according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. (Vehicle 20) As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle 20 has a seat 21 on which an occupant sits. The seat 21 is attached to the vehicle body 22. In this embodiment, the vehicle 20 corresponds to the moving body, the seat 21 corresponds to the loading platform, the vehicle body 22 corresponds to the main body of the moving body, and the occupant corresponds to the load.

[0009] The seat 21 has a loading part 30 where the occupant sits and a base part 40 that supports the loading part 30 from below. (Loading Part 30) As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the loading part 30 has a seat part 30S where the occupant sits down and a backrest part 30B where the occupant leans back. The loading part 30 has a structure in which the seat part 30S and the backrest part 30B are integrally formed.

[0010] The loading portion 30 has a lower convex portion 33. The lower convex portion 33 is constituted by a portion on the lower side of the seat portion 30S and a portion on the back side of the backrest portion 30B. The outer surface of the lower convex portion 33 (hereinafter, the support surface 33A) has a shape that protrudes downward, that is, in a direction away from the occupant seated on the loading portion 30. In the present embodiment, the support surface 33A of the lower convex portion 33 corresponds to the surface supported by the base portion 40. Substantially the entire support surface 33A forms a convex spherical surface downward in a direction away from the occupant seated on the loading portion 30.

[0011] (Base portion 40) As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the base portion 40 is attached to the vehicle body 22. The base portion 40 has a substantially cylindrical outer surface extending in the vertical direction Z of the vehicle 20. An upper concave portion 41 having a shape that is concave downward is provided at the upper end of the base portion 40. The inner surface of the upper concave portion 41 forms a substantially spherical surface.

[0012] In the upper concave portion 41, a plurality (46 in the present embodiment) of guide portions 42 for guiding the relative movement of the base portion 40 and the loading portion 30 are provided at intervals in a manner arranged along the support surface 33A of the loading portion 30 having a spherical surface. Note that FIG. 3 shows the base portion 40 in a state where the guide portion 42 is not attached. As shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of mounting holes 42A are formed in the upper concave portion 41. And the guide portion 42 (FIG. 1) is attached to these mounting holes 42A.

[0013] As shown in FIG. 1, the guide portion 42 has a case 42B supported by the support surface 33A of the upper concave portion 41, and a contact spherical portion 42C that is spherical and contacts the support surface 33A of the lower convex portion 33 and is freely rotatably accommodated in the case 42B. As the guide portion 42, for example, a free bearing (registered trademark) can be adopted. Each guide portion 42 is evenly arranged at intervals over the entire inner surface of the upper concave portion 41.

[0014] In this embodiment, when the loading section 30 is supported by the base section 40 (the state shown in FIG. 1), the contact ball portions 42C of the respective guide portions 42 provided in the upper concave portion 41 of the base section 40 come into contact with the support surface 33A of the lower convex portion 33 of the loading section 30. In this embodiment, by providing such guide portions 42, the base section 40 and the loading section 30 are relatively movable in the direction along the support surface 33A of the loading section 30 that forms a spherical surface.

[0015] (Connecting portion 50) A connecting portion 50 for connecting the base section 40 and the loading section 30 is attached to the seat 21. The connecting portion 50 extends in a first direction (in this embodiment, the vertical direction Z) which is the direction in which the loading section 30 and the base section 40 are aligned. A connecting concave portion 43 extending in the vertical direction Z from the upper end to the vicinity of the lower end of the base section 40 is provided in the central portion of the base section 40 in plan view. The connecting portion 50 is disposed inside this connecting concave portion 43. The connecting portion 50 has a spring portion 51, an upper connecting portion 52, and a lower connecting portion 53.

[0016] (Spring portion 51) The spring portion 51 constitutes an intermediate portion of the connecting portion 50 in the vertical direction Z. A compression coil spring is provided inside the spring portion 51. The axis of this compression coil spring extends in the vertical direction Z. The spring portion 51 has a structure that can expand and contract in the vertical direction Z. And when the spring portion 51 itself extends, the internal compression coil spring is elastically deformed in the compression direction. In this embodiment, the spring portion 51 corresponds to a restoring member that generates a restoring force to return the connecting portion 50 to its original length when the connecting portion 50 extends.

[0017] (Upper connecting portion 52) The upper connecting portion 52 constitutes a portion (specifically, the upper portion) of the connecting portion 50 on the loading section 30 side in the vertical direction Z. The upper connecting portion 52 is provided between the loading section 30 and the spring portion 51 in a manner of connecting the loading section 30 and the upper portion of the spring portion 51. This upper connecting portion 52 has the function of a universal joint.

[0018] (Lower connecting part 53) The lower connecting part 53 constitutes the part (specifically, the lower part) on the base part 40 side in the vertical direction Z of the connecting part 50. The lower connecting part 53 is provided between the base part 40 and the spring part 51 in a manner of connecting the base part 40 (specifically, the bottom wall 45 of the connecting recess 43) and the lower end of the spring part 51. This lower connecting part 53 has the function of a universal joint.

[0019] (Function of the connecting part 50) When the vehicle 20 is running, inertial forces act on the seat 21 of the vehicle 20 and the passengers sitting on the seat 21 along with acceleration, deceleration, turning, driving on a rough road, etc. of the vehicle 20. At this time, in the seat 21 of this embodiment, the relative movement between the loading part 30 of the seat 21 and the base part 40 is allowed by using the guide part 42. Moreover, in the seat 21 of this embodiment, when such relative movement between the loading part 30 and the base part 40 occurs, the spring part 51 of the connecting part 50 expands and contracts, and the compression coil spring in the spring part 51 elastically deforms, so that the inertial force acting on the loading part 30 of the seat 21 is attenuated.

[0020] FIG. 4 shows an example of the operation mode of the connecting part 50 when the vehicle 20 is running. When the vehicle 20 decelerates, an inertial force acts on the loading portion 30 of the seat 21 in a manner of moving it forward. In the example shown in FIG. 4, when the vehicle 20 decelerates in this way, using the guide portion 42, the seat portion 30S of the loading portion 30 moves forward (the left side in FIG. 4) of the seat 21 with respect to the base portion 40. At this time, the upper connecting portion 52 connected to the loading portion 30 is pulled by the loading portion 30, so that as shown by the arrow A in FIG. 4, the spring portion 51 falls forward of the seat 21. And since the spring portion 51 extends at this time, the compression coil spring inside the spring portion 51 elastically deforms in the compression direction. After that, when the inertial force acting on the loading portion 30 becomes small, the compression coil spring in the spring portion 51 is restored to its original length before compression deformation, and at the same time, the spring portion 51 is restored to its original length before extension. As a result, the relative position between the loading portion 30 and the base portion 40 also returns to the original position before movement, specifically, the position before the inertial force accompanying the deceleration of the vehicle 20 acts on the loading portion 30 (the position shown in FIG. 1).

[0021] In the seat 21 of the present embodiment, when the vehicle 20 travels, relative movement between the loading portion 30 and the base portion 40 is allowed in all directions. For example, when the vehicle 20 accelerates, the seat portion 30S of the loading portion 30 moves rearward of the seat 21 with respect to the base portion 40. Also, when the vehicle 20 turns right, the seat portion 30S of the loading portion 30 moves leftward of the seat 21 with respect to the base portion 40. When the vehicle 20 turns left, the seat portion 30S of the loading portion 30 moves rightward of the seat 21 with respect to the base portion 40. And in the seat 21 of the present embodiment, no matter in which direction the loading portion 30 and the base portion 40 relatively move when the vehicle 20 travels, the inertial force acting on the loading portion 30 of the seat 21 is attenuated by the expansion and contraction of the spring portion 51 of the connecting portion 50.

[0022] (Rotation position changing mechanism 60) As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the vehicle 20 has a rotation position changing mechanism 60. The rotation position changing mechanism 60 operates in a manner of integrally rotating the seat 21 (loading portion 30, base portion 40, and connecting portion 50) with respect to the vehicle body 22 around a rotation axis extending in the vertical direction Z.

[0023] The rotation position changing mechanism 60 has a support portion 61. The support portion 61 is provided on the vehicle body 22 and has a cylindrical shape protruding upward and extending. In the present embodiment, the lower portion of the base portion 40 of the seat 21 is housed inside the support portion 61 in such a manner that the inner peripheral surface of the support portion 61 faces the outer peripheral surface of the base portion 40 of the seat 21.

[0024] The rotation position changing mechanism 60 has a plurality (six in the present embodiment) of bearing portions 62. Each bearing portion 62 has a rotation shaft 62A extending in the vertical direction Z and a cylindrical rotation portion 62B provided rotatably around the rotation shaft 62A. A groove (hereinafter, bearing groove 44) extending over the entire circumference is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the lower portion of the base portion 40. In the present embodiment, the rotation shaft 62A of the bearing portion 62 is fixed to the upper end of the support portion 61 in a state where the outer peripheral portion of the rotation portion 62B of the bearing portion 62 is fitted into the bearing groove 44 of the base portion 40. In this way, the bearing portion 62 is provided between the support portion 61 and the base portion 40. By providing such bearing portions 62, the base portion 40 is attached to the support portion 61 in such a manner that the base portion 40 can rotate inside the support portion 61 and the base portion 40 cannot escape from inside the support portion 61.

[0025] The rotation position changing mechanism 60 has a rack gear 63 provided on the base portion 40 and a pinion gear 64 meshing with the rack gear 63. The rack gear 63 is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the base portion 40 in a manner extending in the circumferential direction. The pinion gear 64 is provided on the vehicle body 22 (FIG. 1). An electric motor (hereinafter, rotation position changing motor 65) for rotationally driving the pinion gear 64, a control device 66 for controlling the operation of the rotation position changing motor 65, and a rotation operation switch 67 are provided on the vehicle body 22. The rotation operation switch 67 is a switch operated by the occupant when rotating the seat 21. The output signal of the rotation operation switch 67 is taken into the control device 66.

[0026] (Operation of the rotation position changing mechanism 60) The rotation position changing mechanism 60 operates as follows. When the rotation operation switch 67 is operated by the occupant, the rotation position changing motor 65 is rotationally driven by the control device 66. As a result, the rotation position changing mechanism 60 operates, and the base portion 40 rotates with respect to the vehicle body 22 together with the connecting portion 50 and the loading portion 30 integral therewith.

[0027] (Connecting position changing mechanism 70) As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vehicle 20 has a connecting position changing mechanism 70. The connecting position changing mechanism 70 operates in a manner of changing the connecting position of the connecting portion 50 with respect to the loading portion 30 of the seat 21 in the front-rear direction Y of the seat 21 (specifically, the front-rear direction of the occupant seated on the seat 21).

[0028] Hereinafter, the specific structure of the connecting position changing mechanism 70 will be described. The loading portion 30 of the seat 21 is composed of a seat body 31 and a movable portion 32. The seat body 31 constitutes most of the loading portion 30. A receiving hole 34 is formed in a portion corresponding to the support surface 33A of the seat body 31. The receiving hole 34 extends from the lower surface of the seat portion 30S to the back surface of the backrest portion 30B. The receiving hole 34 has an arcuate cross-section and extends in the front-rear direction Y of the seat 21. The receiving hole 34 has a substantially constant depth and width in the extending direction.

[0029] The movable portion 32 has an arcuate cross-section and extends in the front-rear direction Y of the seat 21. In the present embodiment, the movable portion 32 is housed in the receiving hole 34 of the seat body 31 in such a manner that the outer surface of the movable portion 32 and the outer surface of the seat body 31 are substantially flush, and these outer surfaces constitute the support surface 33A.

[0030] A slide mechanism (not shown) is provided between the accommodation hole 34 of the seat body 31 and the movable part 32. Through this slide mechanism, the movable part 32 is in a state of being reciprocally movable in the front-rear direction Y inside the accommodation hole 34 and is attached to the accommodation hole 34 in a state where it cannot escape from the inside of the accommodation hole 34. In the present embodiment, the upper end portion of the connecting portion 50 (specifically, the upper connecting portion 52) is fixed to the movable part 32.

[0031] The connection position changing mechanism 70 has a rack gear 71 provided on the seat body 31 and a pinion gear 72 (FIG. 1) meshing with the rack gear 71. The rack gear 71 is provided on the bottom surface of the accommodation hole 34 in a manner extending in the front-rear direction Y of the seat 21. The pinion gear 72 is provided inside the movable part 32. Inside the movable part 32, an electric motor (hereinafter, the connection position changing motor 73) for rotationally driving the pinion gear 72 and a control device 74 for controlling the operation of the connection position changing motor 73 are provided. A connection operation switch 75 is attached to the vehicle body 22. This connection operation switch 75 is a switch operated by the occupant when changing the tilt angle (posture) of the loading portion 30 of the seat 21 in the front-rear direction Y. The output signal of the connection operation switch 75 is taken into the control device 74.

[0032] (Operation of the connection position changing mechanism 70) The connection position changing mechanism 70 operates as follows. When the connection operation switch 75 is operated by the occupant, the connection position changing motor 73 is rotationally driven by the control device 74. As a result, the connection position changing mechanism 70 operates, and the movable part 32 and the seat body 31 move relative to each other in the front-rear direction Y of the seat 21. The movable part 32 is connected to the base part 40 via the connecting portion 50. Therefore, when the movable part 32 and the seat body 31 move relative to each other, basically, the connecting portion 50 stays in place and the seat body 31 moves in the front-rear direction Y. In this way, the position of the loading portion 30 (specifically, the seat body 31) of the seat 21 in the front-rear direction Y is changed.

[0033] FIG. 5 shows an example of the operation mode of the connection position changing mechanism 70 when the seat body 31 is moved forward (indicated by arrow B in the figure) with respect to the movable part 32 of the seat 21. As shown in FIG. 5, in this case, the front end of the seat part 30S is lifted, and at the same time, the backrest part 30B is tilted backward.

[0034] On the other hand, when the seat body 31 is moved backward with respect to the movable part 32 of the seat 21, the front end of the seat part 30S is lowered, and at the same time, the backrest part 30B is lifted forward.

[0035] In this embodiment, by operating the rotational position changing mechanism 60, the posture of the seat 21 (specifically, the seat body 31) in the basic state where no inertial force acts on the loading part 30 is changed.

[0036] The effects of this embodiment will be described. (1-1) The seat 21 has a structure in which the loading part 30 is provided on the upper part of the base part 40 in such a manner that the support surface 33A of the lower convex part 33 of the loading part 30 and the inner surface of the upper concave part 41 of the base part 40 face each other. The seat 21 has a connecting part 50 that connects the base part 40 and the loading part 30 via a spring part 51. The support surface 33A of the lower convex part 33 of the loading part 30 forms a spherical surface. The inner surface of the upper concave part 41 of the base part 40 has a guide part 42. The guide part 42 guides the relative movement between the base part 40 and the loading part 30 in a manner that allows them to move relative to each other along the support surface 33A of the lower convex part 33 that forms a spherical surface.

[0037] As described above, when the vehicle 20 is running, inertial forces act on the seat 21 and the passengers sitting on the seat 21. According to the present embodiment, when such inertial forces act, the relative movement between the loading portion 30 of the seat 21 and the base portion 40 is allowed to utilize the guide portion 42. Moreover, when such relative movement between the loading portion 30 and the base portion 40 occurs, the spring portion 51 of the connecting portion 50 expands and contracts, so that the inertial force acting on the loading portion 30 of the seat 21 is attenuated. As a result, the shock acting on the loading portion 30 can be reduced, so that the posture of the loading portion 30 and, thus, the posture of the passengers sitting on the loading portion 30 can be stabilized.

[0038] (1-2) The seat 21 is provided with a connection position changing mechanism 70 for changing the connection position of the connecting portion 50 with respect to the loading portion 30. When the connection position changing mechanism 70 is activated through the operation of the connection operation switch 75 by the passenger, the relative position between the base portion 40 and the loading portion 30 in the basic state where no inertial force acts on the loading portion 30 is changed.

[0039] According to the present embodiment, by operating the connection position changing mechanism 70, the posture of the loading portion 30 in the basic state (hereinafter, the basic posture) can be set such that the seating surface of the seat portion 30S is horizontal as shown in FIG. 1. Also, as shown in an example in FIG. 5, it is also possible to set the basic posture of the loading portion 30 such that the seating surface of the seat portion 30S is inclined in the front-rear direction Y. According to the present embodiment, the basic posture of the loading portion 30 can be arbitrarily set in this way.

[0040] (1-3) The vehicle 20 is provided with a rotational position changing mechanism 60. The rotational position changing mechanism 60 operates in a manner of integrally rotating the entire seat 21 with respect to the vehicle body 22 about a rotation axis extending in the vertical direction Z.

[0041] According to the present embodiment, by operating the rotation operation switch 67 by the occupant to activate the rotation position changing mechanism 60, the orientation (specifically, the rotation position) of the seat 21 around the rotation axis extending in the vertical direction Z can be arbitrarily changed. Therefore, the basic posture of the loading portion 30 of the seat 21 can be set with a high degree of freedom.

[0042] (Second Embodiment) Hereinafter, a second embodiment of the attitude control device will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 10, focusing on the differences from the first embodiment. In the following, among the components of the attitude control device of the present embodiment, the components having the same configuration as those of the attitude control device of the first embodiment are given the same reference numerals or corresponding reference numerals, and duplicate descriptions of those components are omitted.

[0043] Unlike the attitude changing device of the first embodiment, the attitude control device of the present embodiment is not provided with a connection position changing mechanism 70 (see FIG. 1) and its peripheral devices. And the attitude control device of the present embodiment is different from the attitude changing device of the first embodiment in that it has a relative position changing mechanism of a type that is driven according to the moving state of the vehicle.

[0044] Hereinafter, the relative position changing mechanism and its peripheral structure will be described. (Loading Portion 130) As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 has a structure in which a seat portion 130S and a backrest portion 130B are integrally formed. In the loading portion 130, a lower convex portion 133 is formed by a lower portion on the lower side of the seat portion 130S and a rear surface portion on the rear surface side of the backrest portion 130B. The outer surface of the lower convex portion 133 (hereinafter, the support surface 133A) forms a spherical surface that protrudes in a direction away from the occupant seated on the loading portion 130 as a whole. Note that the loading portion 130 of the present embodiment does not have a movable part and is integrally formed as a whole.

[0045] (Relative Position Changing Mechanism 80) As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, a relative position changing mechanism 80 is provided on the sheet 121. The relative position changing mechanism 80 is provided between the lower connecting portion 53 of the connecting portion 150 and the bottom wall 45 of the connecting recess 43 of the base portion 40 in such a manner as to constitute an intermediate portion of the connecting portion 150 in the vertical direction Z. The relative position changing mechanism 80 operates in such a manner as to shift the bottom wall 45 of the connecting recess 43 of the base portion 40 and the lower end of the lower connecting portion 53 in a second direction (specifically, a direction along a plane orthogonal to the vertical direction Z) intersecting the vertical direction Z. In the present embodiment, the bottom wall 45 of the connecting recess 43 of the base portion 40, which is the portion to which one end of the relative position changing mechanism 80 is connected in the vertical direction Z, corresponds to the "portion on the base portion side", and the lower end of the lower connecting portion 53, which is the portion to which the other end is connected, corresponds to the "portion on the loading portion side".

[0046] Specifically, the relative position changing mechanism 80 includes a longitudinal direction changing mechanism 81 that operates to shift the bottom wall 45 of the base portion 40 and the lower end of the lower connecting portion 53 in the longitudinal direction Y of the sheet 121, and a lateral direction changing mechanism 85 that operates to shift the sheet 121 in the lateral direction X.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 8, a guide rail 82 is provided on the bottom wall 45 of the base portion 40 so as to extend in the longitudinal direction Y of the sheet 121. A guide table 83 in the shape of a rectangular plate is attached to the bottom wall 45 of the base portion 40 via the guide rail 82. The guide table 83 is reciprocally movable in the longitudinal direction Y with respect to the base portion 40 by being guided by the guide rail 82. The longitudinal direction changing mechanism 81 is constituted by the guide rail 82 and the guide table 83.

[0048] An electric motor (hereinafter, longitudinal direction motor 84) as a driving portion is connected to the guide table 83 via a gear mechanism (not shown). In the present embodiment, by driving the longitudinal direction changing mechanism 81 through operation control of the longitudinal direction motor 84, it is possible to move the guide table 83 in the longitudinal direction Y.

[0049] Further, a guide rail 86 is provided on the upper surface of the guide table 83 in a manner extending in the left - right direction X of the sheet 121. Also, a rectangular plate - shaped guide table 87 is attached to the upper surface of the guide table 83 via the guide rail 86. The guide table 87 is reciprocally movable in the left - right direction X with respect to the base portion 40 (specifically, the guide table 83) by being guided by the guide rail 86. The left - right direction changing mechanism 85 is constituted by the guide rail 86 and the guide table 87.

[0050] An electric motor (hereinafter, the left - right direction motor 88) as a driving part is connected to the guide table 87 via a gear mechanism (not shown). In the present embodiment, by driving the left - right direction changing mechanism 85 through the operation control of the left - right direction motor 88, it is possible to move the guide table 87 in the left - right direction X.

[0051] (Control device 90) As shown in FIG. 6, the vehicle 20 has a control device 90 that executes the operation control of the front - rear direction motor 84 and the operation control of the left - right direction motor 88. The vehicle 20 is provided with various sensors such as a gyro sensor 91 and an acceleration sensor 92 for detecting the behavior of the vehicle 20 itself. Detection signals of the various sensors are taken into the control device 90. Also, the vehicle 20 is provided with a navigation system 93. In the present embodiment, position information and map information are output as output signals from the navigation system 93, and this output signal is taken into the control device 90.

[0052] The control device 90 executes various calculations based on the output signals of the various sensors and the output signal of the navigation system 93, and executes the operation control of the front - rear direction motor 84 and the operation control of the left - right direction motor 88 based on the calculation results. In the present embodiment, the various sensors and the navigation system 93 correspond to an acquisition unit, the output signals of the various sensors and the output signal of the navigation system 93 correspond to information regarding the moving state of the moving body, and the control device 90 corresponds to a control unit.

[0053] (Operation of the relative position changing mechanism 80) The relative position changing mechanism 80 operates as follows. When the control device 90 executes the operation control of the front-rear direction motor 84 and the front-rear direction changing mechanism 81 operates, the lower part of the connecting portion 150 moves in the front-rear direction Y with respect to the base portion 40. At this time, the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 is pulled by the connecting portion 150 connected thereto, and moves in the front-rear direction Y together with the connecting portion 150. As a result, the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 moves in a direction along the outer surface of the lower convex portion 133 forming a spherical surface.

[0054] Fig. 9 shows an example of the attitude change mode of the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 when the front-rear direction changing mechanism 81 operates and the guide table 83 and the connecting portion 150 move forward. The two-dot chain line in Fig. 9 indicates the basic attitude of the loading portion 130 of the seat 121, and the solid line in Fig. 9 indicates the attitude of the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 when the front-rear direction changing mechanism 81 operates. In Fig. 9, for ease of understanding, the moving amounts of the guide table 83, the connecting portion 150, and the loading portion 130 are exaggeratedly shown.

[0055] As shown in Fig. 9, when the front-rear direction changing mechanism 81 operates and the guide table 83 and the connecting portion 150 move forward, the front end of the seat portion 130S of the seat 121 is lifted (the state shown by the solid line in the figure), and at the same time, the backrest portion 130B falls backward.

[0056] On the other hand, when the front-rear direction changing mechanism 81 operates and the guide table 83 and the connecting portion 150 move backward with respect to the base portion 40, the front end of the seat portion 130S of the seat 121 is lowered, and at the same time, the backrest portion 130B is lifted forward.

[0057] Further, when the control device 90 executes the operation control of the left - right direction motor 88 and the left - right direction change mechanism 85 operates, the lower part of the connecting portion 150 moves in the left - right direction X with respect to the base portion 40. At this time, the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 is pulled by the connected connecting portion 150 and moves in the left - right direction X together with the connecting portion 150. Thereby, the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 moves in the direction along the outer surface of the lower convex portion 33 forming a spherical surface.

[0058] FIG. 10 shows an example of the attitude change mode of the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 when the left - right direction change mechanism 85 operates and the guide table 87 and the connecting portion 150 move to the left. The two - dotted chain line in FIG. 10 shows the basic attitude of the loading portion 130 of the seat 121, and the solid line in FIG. 10 shows the attitude of the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 when the left - right direction change mechanism 85 operates. In FIG. 10, for ease of understanding, the moving amounts of the guide table 87, the connecting portion 150, and the loading portion 130 are exaggeratedly shown.

[0059] As shown in FIG. 10, when the left - right direction change mechanism 85 operates and the guide table 87 and the connecting portion 150 move to the left with respect to the base portion 40, the left side of the seat portion 130S is lifted, and the seat surface of the seat portion 130S is in an inclined state.

[0060] On the other hand, when the left - right direction change mechanism 85 operates and the guide table 87 and the connecting portion 50 move to the right with respect to the base portion 40, the right side of the seat portion 130S is lifted, and the seat surface of the seat portion 130S is in an inclined state.

[0061] In this embodiment, when the control device 90 simultaneously executes the operation control of the front-rear direction motor 84 and the operation control of the left-right direction motor 88, the front-rear direction change mechanism 81 and the left-right direction change mechanism 85 are interlocked. In this case, the connecting portion 150 can be moved in any direction with respect to the base portion 40. Therefore, the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 can also be moved in any direction by being pulled by the connecting portion 150 connected thereto.

[0062] The operation control of the front-rear direction motor 84 and the operation control of the left-right direction motor 88 by the control device 90 are executed as follows. (Control Example 1) The loading portion 130 is moved so as to cancel out the shock applied to the seat 121 in accordance with the actual behavior of the vehicle 20.

[0063] For example, when deceleration of the vehicle 20 is detected, the front-rear direction change mechanism 81 can be operated in accordance with the deceleration to move the connecting portion 150 forward. In this case, since the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 can be pulled forward and moved in accordance with the deceleration of the vehicle 20, it is possible to reduce the shock applied to the seat 121 and the occupant sitting on the seat 121.

[0064] In addition, when a right turn of the vehicle 20 is detected, the left-right direction change mechanism 85 can be operated in accordance with the right turn to move the connecting portion 50 to the left. In this case, since the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 can be pulled to the right and moved in accordance with the right turn of the vehicle 20, it is possible to reduce the shock applied to the seat 121 and the occupant.

[0065] (Control Example 2) Predict the movement state of the vehicle 20 based on the information (position information, map information) acquired from the navigation system 93, and control the attitude of the loading portion 30 in accordance with the predicted movement state.

[0066] For example, at the timing when it is predicted that the vehicle 20 is approaching a turning angle, the left-right direction changing mechanism 85 can be actuated to move the connecting portion 50 outward in the turning direction. In this case, when the vehicle 20 turns, the posture of the seat 121 and the posture of the occupant sitting on the seat 121 can be set in advance to a posture inclined inward in the turning direction in preparation for the turning of the vehicle 20.

[0067] The effects of the present embodiment will be described. (2-1) The seat 121 is provided with a relative position changing mechanism 80. The relative position changing mechanism 80 operates in a mode of shifting the bottom wall 45 of the connecting recess 43 of the base portion 40 and the lower end of the lower connecting portion 53 in a second direction intersecting the vertical direction Z. The vehicle 20 is provided with a front-rear direction motor 84 and a left-right direction motor 88 for driving the relative position changing mechanism 80, and a control device 90 for executing the operation control of these motors 84, 88. The vehicle 20 is provided with various sensors and a navigation system 93 for acquiring information regarding its moving state. The control device 90 executes the operation control of each motor 84, 88 based on the information regarding the moving state of the vehicle 20 acquired from various sensors and the navigation system 93, and actuates the relative position changing mechanism 80.

[0068] According to the present embodiment, the posture of the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 can be controlled with a high degree of freedom, such as controlling it according to the actual running state of the vehicle 20 or pre-controlling it according to the predicted moving state of the vehicle 20. Therefore, the posture of the seat 121, and thus the posture of the occupant sitting on the seat 121, can be finely controlled according to the situation.

[0069] (2-2) According to the present embodiment, the same effects as those described in the above (1-1) and (1-3) can be obtained. (Other Embodiments) Note that the above embodiments can be implemented with the following modifications. The above embodiments and the following modification examples can be implemented in combination with each other within a range where there is no technical contradiction.

[0070] · In the first embodiment, the connection position changing mechanism 70 is not limited to adopting a rack and pinion mechanism including a rack gear 71 provided on the seat body 31 and a pinion gear 72 provided on the movable part 32, and any mechanism can be adopted. The key is that any structure capable of changing the connection position of the connecting part 50 with respect to the loading part 30 can be adopted as the connection position changing mechanism.

[0071] FIG. 11 shows an example of such a connection position changing mechanism 270. As shown in FIG. 11, in this example, a hook 276 is provided at the end on the loading part 230 side of the upper connecting part 52 of the connecting part 250. The loading part 230 has a through hole 235. The connecting part 250 is inserted into this through hole 235. A recess (hereinafter, locking recess 236) for hooking the hook 276 is provided at the edge of the through hole 235 on the upper surface of the loading part 230. The locking recesses 236 are provided at a plurality of positions (seven positions in this example) in a manner arranged at intervals in the front-rear direction Y. In the connection position changing mechanism 270 of this example, by selecting one of the plurality of locking recesses 236 and hooking the hook 276 of the connecting part 250, the posture of the loading part 230 in the front-rear direction Y can be adjusted in multiple stages.

[0072] · In the first embodiment, in addition to providing a structure capable of changing the connection position of the connecting part 50 with respect to the loading part 30 as the connection position changing mechanism 70, it is also possible to provide a structure capable of changing the connection position of the connecting part 50 with respect to the base part 40.

[0073] · In the first embodiment, the base part 40 of the seat 21 may be fixed to the vehicle body 22. In this case, as the rotation position changing mechanism, a type that operates in a manner of integrally rotating the connection position changing mechanism 70, the loading part 30, and the connecting part 50 with respect to the base part 40 around a rotation axis extending in the vertical direction Z can be provided. With the same configuration, by operating the rotation position changing mechanism, the loading part 30 of the seat 21 can be rotated with respect to the vehicle body 22 around a rotation axis extending in the vertical direction Z.

[0074] · In the second embodiment, in accordance with performing the operation control of each of the motors 84 and 88 corresponding to the relative position changing mechanism 80 based on the information regarding the moving state of the vehicle 20, the operation control of the rotational position changing motor 65 corresponding to the rotational position changing mechanism 60 may be performed. According to this configuration, in addition to controlling the posture of the seat 121 in the front-rear direction Y and the left-right direction X, the direction of the seat 121 about the rotation axis extending in the up-down direction Z can be controlled. Therefore, the posture of the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 can be controlled with a higher degree of freedom.

[0075] · In the second embodiment, as the acquisition unit for acquiring the information regarding the moving state of the vehicle 20, any device such as a camera, a radar sensor, a lidar (LiDAR), etc. can be adopted.

[0076] · In the second embodiment, the installation position of the relative position changing mechanism 80 can be set at any position as long as the relative position changing mechanism 80 constitutes a middle portion in the up-down direction Z at the connecting portion 50. For example, the relative position changing mechanism 80 may be provided between the lower connecting portion 53 and the spring portion 51, or between the upper connecting portion 52 and the loading portion 130.

[0077] · In the second embodiment, as the driving unit for driving the relative position changing mechanism 80, in addition to using an electric motor, a hydraulic actuator, a pneumatic actuator, etc. can be used.

[0078] · In the second embodiment, either one of the front-rear direction changing mechanism 81 and the left-right direction changing mechanism 85 can be omitted. · In the second embodiment, the relative position changing mechanism 80, that is, both the front-rear direction changing mechanism 81 and the left-right direction changing mechanism 85 can be omitted. In this case, the lower end of the lower connecting portion 53 may be connected to the bottom wall 45 of the base portion 40.

[0079] · In the second embodiment, the base portion 40 may be fixed to the vehicle body 22. In this case, as the rotation position changing mechanism, a type that operates in such a manner that the loading portion 130 and the connecting portion 150 (including the relative position changing mechanism 80) are integrally rotated with respect to the base portion 40 about a rotation axis extending in the vertical direction Z can be provided. Also with this configuration, by operating the rotation position changing mechanism, the loading portion 130 of the seat 121 can be rotated with respect to the vehicle body 22 about a rotation axis extending in the vertical direction Z.

[0080] · In each embodiment, a part of the outer surface of the lower convex portions 33, 133 such as making the edge portions of the lower convex portions 33, 133 of the loading portions 30, 130 have a shape other than a spherical surface may be used. In short, the outer surface shape of the lower convex portions 33, 133 may be set so that all the portions in contact with the respective guide portions 42 on the outer surface of the lower convex portions 33, 133 constitute the same spherical surface.

[0081] · In each embodiment, the inner surface of the upper concave portion 41 of the base portion 40 is not limited to being substantially spherical and can be of any shape. Also, it is possible to adopt a base portion 40 having a structure without the upper concave portion 41. In short, the upper structure of the base portion 40 can be arbitrarily changed as long as the portions of the respective guide portions 42 in contact with the lower convex portions 33, 133 are arranged on the same spherical surface.

[0082] · In each embodiment, instead of providing the plurality of guide portions 42 in the upper concave portion 41 of the base portion 40, they may be provided on the lower convex portion 33 of the loading portion 30. In this configuration, the inner surface of the upper concave portion 41 of the base portion 40 may be formed to be substantially spherical. In this configuration, the inner surface of the upper concave portion 41 corresponds to the surface that supports the loading portion 30. Also in the above configuration, the guide portions 42 may be arranged below the seat portion 30S and on the back side of the backrest portion 30B on the outer surface of the loading portion 30 so that the portions in contact with the upper concave portion 41 of the respective guide portions 42 are arranged on the same spherical surface. In this case, the portion on the lower side of the seat portion 30S and the portion on the back side of the backrest portion 30B on the outer surface of the loading portion 30 are not limited to being substantially spherical and can be of any shape.

[0083] · In each embodiment, the guide portion 42 is not limited to having the case 42B and the contact ball portion 42C, and any structure can be adopted. For example, the inner surface of the upper concave portion 41 of the base portion 40 may be formed into a spherical surface, and the inner surface of this upper concave portion 41 may be used as the guide portion. In this case, the loading portions 30 and 130 may be provided on the base portion 40 in such a manner that the lower convex portions 33 and 133 of the loading portions 30 and 130 are received in the upper concave portion 41 of the base portion 40. Further, in this case, in order to improve the sliding property, it is preferable to supply (apply) a lubricant (oil, grease) or supply compressed air between the inner surface of the upper concave portion 41 of the base portion 40 and the outer surface of the lower convex portions 33 and 133 of the loading portions 30 and 130.

[0084] · In each embodiment, as the spring portion 51, in addition to adopting a type having a built-in compression coil spring, a type of shock absorber in which the damping force in the compression direction is smaller than the damping force in the extension direction can also be adopted.

[0085] · In each embodiment, the structure of the rotational position changing mechanism 60 can be arbitrarily changed as long as it is a structure capable of integrally rotating the seats 21 and 121 with respect to the vehicle body 22. For example, as the rotational position changing mechanism, a mechanism having a rack gear provided on the inner peripheral surface of the support portion 61 and a pinion gear rotatably provided on the base portion 40 and meshing with the rack gear can be adopted.

[0086] · In each embodiment, a manually operated type of rotational position changing mechanism 60 may be provided. · In each embodiment, the rotational position changing mechanism 60 can be omitted.

[0087] · The attitude control device according to each embodiment can also be applied to an attitude control device for a moving body other than an automobile, such as an attitude control device for controlling the attitude of a seat provided on a wheelchair or an attitude control device for controlling the attitude of a loading platform provided on an automatic transport vehicle.

[0088] By applying the posture control device according to each embodiment to a wheelchair, the posture of the seat (specifically, its loading part), and thus the posture of the occupant sitting on the seat can be stabilized. FIG. 12 shows an example of the structure of a loading platform when the posture control device according to each embodiment is applied to an automated guided vehicle. As shown in FIG. 12, the loading platform 321 has a base part 40 and a loading part 330. The upper part of the loading part 330 is a flat plate part 330S having a flat plate shape. The lower part of the loading part 330 is a lower convex part 333 whose outer surface is spherical. And the loading part 330 is provided on the upper part of the base part 40 in such a manner that the outer surface of the lower convex part 333 of the loading part 330 and the inner surface of the upper concave part 41 of the base part 40 face each other. According to such a configuration, since the shock acting on the loading part 330 can be reduced, the posture of the loading part 330, and thus the posture of the load placed on the loading part 330 can be stabilized.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0089] 20…Vehicle 21, 121…Seat 22…Vehicle body 30, 130, 230, 330…Loading part 31…Seat body 32…Movable part 33, 133, 333…Lower convex part 33A, 133A…Support surface 40…Base part 41…Upper concave part 42…Guide part 50, 150, 250…Connecting part 51…Spring part 60…Rotation position changing mechanism 63…Rack gear 64…Pinion gear 70, 270…Connection position changing mechanism 71…Rack gear 72…Pinion gear 80…Relative position changing mechanism 81…Front-rear direction changing mechanism 84…Front-rear direction motor 85…Left-right direction changing mechanism 88…Left-right direction motor 90…Control device 91…Gyro sensor 92…Acceleration sensor 93…Navigation system 236…Locking recess 276…Hook 321…Loading platform

Claims

1. In an attitude control device for controlling the attitude of a loading platform provided on a moving body, the loading platform has a loading part that constitutes a part on which a load is placed, a base part provided below the loading part in a manner of supporting the loading part, and a connecting part that connects the base part and the loading part via a restoring member that generates a restoring force to return to the original length when extended, and the loading part and the base part are provided in such a manner that the lower part of the loading part and the upper part of the base part face each other, and one of the upper part of the base part and the lower part of the loading part forms a convex spherical surface downward, and the other of the upper part of the base part and the lower part of the loading part is provided with a guiding part that guides the base part and the loading part to be relatively movable in a direction along the spherical surface, the attitude control device includes a connection position changing mechanism that changes at least one of the connection position of the connecting part with respect to the base part and the connection position of the connecting part with respect to the loading part. Attitude control device.

2. An acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the moving state of the moving body, when the direction in which the base part and the loading part are aligned is defined as the first direction, it is provided in a manner of constituting an intermediate part of the connecting part in the first direction, and a relative position changing mechanism that operates in a manner of shifting a part on the base part side and a part on the loading part side in a second direction intersecting the first direction, a driving part that is connected to the relative position changing mechanism and drives the relative position changing mechanism, and a control part that controls the operation of the driving part based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit. The attitude control device according to Claim 1.

3. In an attitude control device for controlling the attitude of a loading platform provided on a moving body, the loading platform A loading part that constitutes a part on which a load is placed, a base part provided below the loading part in a manner of supporting the loading part, and a connecting part that connects the base part and the loading part via a restoring member that generates a restoring force to return to the original length when extended, and the loading part and the base part are provided in such a manner that the lower part of the loading part and the upper part of the base part face each other, and one of the upper part of the base part and the lower part of the loading part forms a convex spherical surface downward, and the other of the upper part of the base part and the lower part of the loading part is provided with a guiding part that guides the base part and the loading part to be relatively movable in a direction along the spherical surface, the attitude control device, an acquisition part that acquires information regarding the moving state of the moving body, when the direction in which the base part and the loading part are aligned is defined as the first direction, it is provided in a manner of constituting an intermediate part of the connecting part in the first direction, and a relative position changing mechanism that operates in a manner of shifting the part on the base part side and the part on the loading part side in a second direction intersecting the first direction, a driving part that is connected to the relative position changing mechanism and drives the relative position changing mechanism, a control part that controls the operation of the driving part based on the information acquired by the acquisition part, and is provided with an attitude control device.

4. The attitude control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a rotational position changing mechanism that operates in a manner of integrally rotating the loading part and the connecting part with respect to the main body of the moving body about a rotation axis extending in the first direction in which the base part and the loading part are aligned.

5. In an attitude control device for controlling the attitude of a loading platform provided on a moving body, the loading platform, A loading part that constitutes a part on which a load is placed, a base part provided below the loading part in a manner of supporting the loading part, and a connecting part that connects the base part and the loading part via a restoring member that generates a restoring force to return to the original length when extended. The loading part and the base part are provided in such a manner that the lower part of the loading part and the upper part of the base part face each other. One of the upper part of the base part and the lower part of the loading part forms a convex spherical surface downward, and the other of the upper part of the base part and the lower part of the loading part is provided with a guiding part that guides the base part and the loading part to be relatively movable in a direction along the spherical surface. The attitude control device includes a rotation position changing mechanism that operates in such a manner as to integrally rotate the loading part and the connecting part with respect to the main body of the moving body about a rotation axis extending in a first direction in which the base part and the loading part are aligned. Attitude control device.

6. The moving body is a vehicle. The loading platform is a seat. The attitude control device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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